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Imagine a human body without a skeleton! What a horrendous thought! Without leg bones, arm bones, rib cage, spine or skull, you or I would be reduced to a blob! Think about the changes it would make in every aspect of life! Without finger bones, we could no longer handle the thousands of things we must handle in everyday routines. Without foot and leg bones, we could not stand up or walk around. Without a rib cage or skull the vital organs would crush each other and be incapable of functioning properly. We would be intolerably vulnerable to every simple injury. In a word, we would DIE without a skeleton. We simply could not live! True doctrine is the backbone of your soul. In a spiritual way, our skeleton typifies TRUE DOCTRINE in the life of a Christian believer. Without true doctrine in your soul, you have no constitution, no fortitude, no basis for exactness, no real definition and no clear purpose or ideal. That is why ecumenical religion is unacceptable. Ecumenism is all about INEXACTNESS. It has lack of definition, which is a lack of backbone! You would have to be blind not to notice that the overwhelming trend in religion today is toward ecumenism. Around the world, the "politically-correct" culture is demanding that all religions come together in unity of faith. The foolish notion is that Christians, Muslims, Hindus, Buddhists, Shintoists, and every other kind of religion can somehow find a primitive common denominator that will allow us to become one. Nothing could be more absurd or outrageous. God is thrown completely out of the picture by such insane thinking. What is ecumenism? Roget's Thesaurus gives these synonyms for ecumenism: "broadness, looseness, imprecision, inexactness, indiscrimination." Simply put, the religious impetus of this generation is toward inexactness! Our global society wants to FORCE religion to be politically correct and NEVER say anything specific that would contradict any other religion or prejudice any other belief system. What a preposterous, ludicrous notion! Nowadays, religion must be inexact, imprecise, or loose to be acceptable to the masses. But the Christianity of Jesus Christ can never and will never fit that mold. Take a look for yourself and you will see religious bodies abandoning their ancient doctrinal beliefs. The Roman Catholic Church met in conclave during VATICAN II (1962-1965), also known as the Ecumenical Council. The Pope, Cardinals and Bishops of the RCC deliberated for ways to entice the other religions of the world into Rome's controlling circle of influence. The end result was the modern Ecumenical Movement. By creating a religious environment that PRAISES INEXACTNESS, the RCC intended to de-emphasize the doctrinal distinctives between it and all the other religions, especially its own "Protestant" daughters - those who left the RCC since the days of Martin Luther and The Reformation (1517). But ecumenism has taken its toll in many ways on the Catholic Church itself. Within its own ranks, many have ceased to believe the doctrinal distinctives of the RCC, to its own instability. The Society of Jesuits were for centuries the "Pope’s men," unquestionably loyal to the Roman Catholic doctrine and papacy. But in recent decades, the Jesuits have abandoned historical Roman church doctrine and become global change-masters for "Liberation Theology," painting Jesus Christ as a Radical Socialist Revolutionary bearing an automatic weapon (as was seen in the Sandinista movement in Nicaragua and spreading like wildfire around the globe). Some depicted the Jesuits as adversaries of the Pope himself. But with the passing of time, we can now see evidence that even the Magisterium (the Roman Catholic hierarchy) is embracing Liberation Theology (Catholic Socialism). Roman Catholicism has become one of the primary proponents of Socialism worldwide - a RADICAL, EXTREME DEPARTURE from its historical identity! The Catholic Church, which NEVER followed the Bible closely, perpetually drifts farther and farther from Biblical Christianity and has even sold out much of its own historical doctrinal backbone to maintain its powerful status in global political affairs. Ecumenism takes its toll on Protestant Fundamentalism Even Southern Baptists in America argue whether the Bible is the infallible word of God. Their forefathers would roll over in their graves. All around the world, so-called Christianity drifts further and further from the infallible doctrines of the Bible in favor of new, humanistic thinking and loose, liberal pseudo-Christian theologies. Atheism and agnosticism are no longer commodities of the heathen alone. Even powerful religious leaders openly express their cynicism and doubts about the ancient teachings of the Bible. So why don't they simply abandon religion instead of perverting it beyond recognition? Without a "backbone" of divine, eternal truth, all religion is ultimately doomed anyway. The Episcopal Church and many others now approve homosexual lifestyles in their fellowship, even electing homosexual Bishops, despite nearly 4,000 years of sacred Biblical and secular history that clearly denounced homosexuality as an abomination in the eyes of God. Divine law says, "If a man also lie with mankind, as he lieth with a woman, both of them have committed an abomination: they shall surely be put to death; their blood shall be upon them," Leviticus 20:13. But modern men defiantly and flagrantly foist their shameful lusts into the public eye, and perpetrate criminal reprisals against anyone who criticizes them. The cost for taking homosexuality mainstream is the corruption and weakening of the greatest force for good in the history of the world - the Church of Jesus Christ. Because of our unwillingness to stand by this ancient, divine doctrine, we are witnessing the melt-down of Western Civilization. 
Ecumenical religion has no backbone
God did not create me to be a jellyfish (photo). He made me with a backbone. I will make it my business to continually restate and reaffirm the greatest doctrines of the Bible. Without them, we are subject and vulnerable to every whim of man. We cannot stand or move without true doctrine. We cannot work or be profitable without doctrine. Doctrine is our feet and legs; it is our hands and arms, our rib cage, our skull. If we do not believe AND STATE that the Bible is the inspired and infallible Word of God, then we have no backbone. If we do not believe there is but One God, and know who He is, we have no skull. If you have NO DOCTRINE, you have have NO SPIRITUAL IDENTITY, and ultimately NO DEFINITION FOR LIFE. Any society that rejects the ancient, well-defined and time-tested precepts of the Bible will inevitably end in ANARCHY and CHAOS. The Royal Society of London uses as its motto the words of the ancient poet, Horace (65-8 BC), "In the word of no master am I bound to believe." No master? Refusing to believe in the wisdom of the ages? Trying to reinvent the human race in every generation? How foolish! How fickle! Somehow, this asinine mindset is growing like a giant tumor around the jugular veins of all western society. Nobody wants to be bound to the words of any master. No authority. Every man wants to do what is best in his own eyes. But any society that denies the mastery of ancient wisdom, particularly the Word of Almighty God, is begging for anarchy and perpetual chaos. Unless and until this generation submits to the mastery of Jesus Christ - "God with us" - society will only accelerate its nosedive into complete anarchy, social chaos, and at last, an implosion. If any definition of God is acceptable, then no definition is legitimate! If Buddha, Confucius, or Mohammed are equal sons of God to Jesus Christ, then being a son of God is impertinent (as many would have us believe). But the deity of Jesus Christ is NOT impertinent. It is the greatest doctrine of all doctrines. Spiritual AIDS Any time we refuse to believe in absolute values, especially about things pertaining to God, we subject ourselves to the spiritual equivalent of AIDS: a body loses its resistance to harmful things. No thinking person can logically or rationally denounce the significance of right and wrong. Life must have explicit values of black and white. Everything cannot be gray. The inspired, infallible Word of God is His structure for us. God is a Spirit, incarnate in the body of Jesus Christ. He is our Creator. He gave us His law at the hand of Moses by many mighty miracles. The law was our schoolmaster, to bring us to Christ. Jesus' death, burial and resurrection are inescapable truths. They are the basis of our eternal hope and salvation. Our repentance and death to selfishness is a symbol of His death. Our baptism in His name symbolizes our burial with Him. Our baptism in the Holy Spirit speaks of our resurrection WITH HIM unto eternal life. Jesus taught Nicodemus that "except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God. That which is born of the flesh is flesh; and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit. Marvel not that I said unto thee, Ye must be born again," John 3:5-7. No one can see or enter the eternal Kingdom of God without having repented of his or her sins, and being baptized in both water and Spirit. Those who obey Jesus' words are born again into His body, the Church. The Apostle Paul has a message for the Church today. "Be ye not unequally yoked together with unbelievers: for what fellowship hath righteousness with unrighteousness? and what communion hath light with darkness? And what concord hath Christ with Belial? or what part hath he that believeth with an infidel? And what agreement hath the temple of God with idols? for ye are the temple of the living God; as God hath said, I will dwell in them, and walk in them; and I will be their God, and they shall be my people. Wherefore come out from among them, and be ye separate, saith the Lord, and touch not the unclean thing; and I will receive you, And will be a Father unto you, and ye shall be my sons and daughters, saith the Lord Almighty," 2 Corinthians 6:14-18. God calls all men out and away from the world's ways and vices to be holy, separate people unto Him. Jesus also promised to return to earth at the end of the age to resurrect the righteous dead and receive the righteous living into His presence. "Let not your heart be troubled: ye believe in God, believe also in me. In my Father's house are many mansions: if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you unto myself; that where I am, there ye may be also," John 14:1-3. Finally, He promises to destroy the evil powers on earth, and set up an earthly government for 1,000 years. Afterward, He will form a new and eternal heaven and earth. "And I saw heaven opened, and behold a white horse; and he that sat upon him was called Faithful and True, and in righteousness he doth judge and make war. His eyes were as a flame of fire, and on his head were many crowns; and he had a name written, that no man knew, but he himself. And he was clothed with a vesture dipped in blood: and his name is called The Word of God. And the armies which were in heaven followed him upon white horses, clothed in fine linen, white and clean. And out of his mouth goeth a sharp sword, that with it he should smite the nations: and he shall rule them with a rod of iron: and he treadeth the winepress of the fierceness and wrath of Almighty God. And he hath on his vesture and on his thigh a name written, KING OF KINGS, AND LORD OF LORDS. And I saw an angel standing in the sun; and he cried with a loud voice, saying to all the fowls that fly in the midst of heaven, Come and gather yourselves together unto the supper of the great God; That ye may eat the flesh of kings, and the flesh of captains, and the flesh of mighty men, and the flesh of horses, and of them that sit on them, and the flesh of all men, both free and bond, both small and great. And I saw the beast, and the kings of the earth, and their armies, gathered together to make war against him that sat on the horse, and against his army. And the beast was taken, and with him the false prophet that wrought miracles before him, with which he deceived them that had received the mark of the beast, and them that worshipped his image. These both were cast alive into a lake of fire burning with brimstone. And the remnant were slain with the sword of him that sat upon the horse, which sword proceeded out of his mouth: and all the fowls were filled with their flesh," Revelation 19:11-21. "For it is written, As I live, saith the Lord, every knee shall bow to me, and every tongue shall confess to God," Romans 14:11. These are irrefutable doctrines. I will believe them, preach them and live by them. I have a backbone. If not, then what? If this miracle-working man Jesus Christ, risen from the dead and ascended into the heavens is not to be believed, then who is? Are you a man or a jellyfish?
See also:
Jesus Christ: Most Phenomenal Human Who Ever Lived
See also: Holiness: A Place Apart From Forbidden Things See also: Don't Let The Light Go Out
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